According to a new report, Unknown Worlds is preparing to release underwater survival game Subnautica 2 in Early Access in just a couple of months.
As reported by IGN, an internal memo sent to employees by Unknown Worlds head Steve Papoutsis confirms that Subnautica 2 will enter its Early Access period in May, and that this date was “unanimously” agreed upon by Unknown Worlds management and parent company Krafton.
Krafton itself also confirmed to IGN that Papoutsis’ message to staff was “accurate”, and that the publisher is fully behind launching the game in May, believing that it’s ready for this initial phase of its rollout.
Subnautica 2 is apparently ready to dive into Early Access in May.
News of Subnautica 2‘s Early Access release period (although, admittedly, not its specific launch date) follows on from this week’s court ruling that former CEO Ted Gill must be reinstated and that his original dismissal from Unknown Worlds on Krafton’s part was unfair.
Krafton says it “respectfully disagree[s]” with the ruling and that it intends to “explore all legal avenues” relating to said decision, but that its core goal is to “minimize disruption to the team and to the release plan”.
As a reminder, this saga began when Subnautica 2, which was originally due to hit Early Access last year, was delayed to 2026, a decision that also saw Krafton firing the three co-founders of Unknown Worlds.
Said co-founders then filed a lawsuit against Krafton, alleging that the game was ready for release in 2025 and that Krafton had delayed it in order to avoid paying out a big bonus relating to revenue goals (which Subnautica 2 would almost certainly have helped the studio to hit).
Here’s hoping that the light is finally at the end of the (presumably underwater) tunnel for the Subnautica 2 team. The game is due to land on PC and Xbox Series X|S in Early Access this May. Stay tuned for more.
